1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to devices and methods that are used to accurately terminate optical fibers in a dense grouping so that those optical fibers can be aligned and connected to other optical fibers in a more space and labor efficient manner.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The prior art is replete with different devices and methods that are used to terminate groupings of optical fibers. In the past, optical fibers were most commonly joined either one fiber at a time or in ribbons that contain only a single row of optical fibers. As optical fiber networks become more complex, there are many instances where a large number of optical fibers in a bundle or a cable must be joined to another bundle or cable. Joining the optical fibers one fiber at a time or even one ribbon at a time is very time consuming and labor intensive. A need therefore exists for a method that would enable a greater number of optical fibers to be accurately terminated in a dense package so that those optical fibers can be more readily connected to other optical fibers with less labor.
One technique that can be used to terminate optical fibers in a dense package is to terminate a grouping of optical fibers in a two-dimensional array. Once terminated in a two-dimensional array, the optical fibers would terminate in a common plane while being arranged within fixed columns and rows. One two-dimensional array can then be connected with a similar array, thereby enabling a large number of fibers to be joined in a single operation.
A problem associated with terminating optical fibers in a two-dimensional array is that the manufacturing tolerances needed for the proper alignment of the optical fibers prohibits the structure of the two-dimensional array from being manufactured in a cost effective manner. When aligning optical fibers, the fibers must be aligned within only a few microns in order to produce an efficient transmission between optical fibers. For example, if two single mode fibers are laterally misaligned by only five microns, the coupling efficiency of the connection would only be 36% of a properly aligned connection. As a result, for two arrays to be connected, each must have a placement tolerance for the optical fiber on the order of one micron or less. In order to produce such an optical connector, exotic manufacturing techniques would have to be used, thereby resulting in a cost prohibitive connector.
A need therefore exists for a device and method that can be used to inexpensively and accurately terminate optical fibers in a dense two-dimensional array.